Back To The Origin
by CagedInOblivion
Summary: Awoken to the gentle sounds of waves from the sea of LCL, Shinji Ikari is alone except for one other survivor of the third impact, Asuka Langley. They must search the desolate land for other survivors so they can begin life again.


_Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this piece though I do own rights to the storyline. The characters belong to Gainax & Anno Hideaki and the producer Ishikawa Mitsuhisa and can be seen on the televison series Neon Genesis Evangelion and the theatre productions Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death and Rebirth and Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End Of Evangelion._

_A/N: The story takes off directly after the third impact and begins with the last scene of the movie Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End Of Evangelion. This is my first Evangelion fan-fiction so please don't be too harsh on the reviews, do however point out any flaws so I can change them instantly. I look forward to updating._

**Chapter 1- Cheap Honesty**

He couldn't remember opening his eyes, but as Shinji Ikari stared up at the night sky he felt as though he was seeing it for the first time. His hands lay still at his sides and he made no effort to change that. He was in a complete state of shock and disorder. A crimson mark split the moon above; though the boy didn't question this due to the strange events he had seen occur on that very day. He felt nothing could seem unusual now, after viewing the third impact and the destruction of mankind. Slowly he tilted his head to the side and his expressionless face saw a familiar girl with short silver hair floating above a sea of LCL. A moment later she vanished mysteriously. Rei Ayanami, he thought painfully remembering her sacrifice for him. He knew she had appeared to say goodbye, he knew he would never see her again. There was no question about the sea of LCL at that point, Shinji just accepted. He accepted the blank ground below him just as easily.

Next to the boy laid a still girl with rich red hair. She wore a cast on her arm and was obviously injured badly. She lay unconscious, in the same manner as Shinji. Shinji knew her as Asuka Langley.

He sat up slowly without the intention of doing so, his eyes fixed on the sea of LCL and the wreck of street lamps and buildings around. Visions of the cruelty of the girl beside him now flashed before his eyes and suddenly he was on top of Asuka choking her, even though she couldn't react. His hatred had forced him to do so, her bullying had pushed him to the limits and he no longer wanted to see her face again. He trembled at doing so and his whole body shook with inner rage. No noise could be heard except the waves of the sea of LCL and the sound of his disturbed-breathing pattern. Her hand twitched slightly and she looked directly at him. She raised her hand to his face, strangely not reacting to the choking. She touched his face in an affectionate manner, her expression blank while doing so. She had awoken.

Her gentle mother-like touch was a moment of comfort for Shinji and all of a sudden he felt ashamed of what he was doing. His grip immediately eased up and tears fell from his eyes onto the girl's face. She removed her hand instantaneously, her facial features remaining blank and he removed his hands from her throat, breaking down in tears. He shuddered violently while in this state and Asuka suddenly looked stern and unsympathetic. "How disgusting." She commented quietly.

Shinji didn't move from his position on top of the girl but continued to sob violently. She made no effort to move him though she continued to stare in disgust. There were no words or gestures of sympathy from Asuka and the only sounds that could be heard now were the sounds of the waves and Shinji sobbing. "Rei, Misato, Ritsuko, father," Shinji said to himself. "They're all gone. We're alone Asuka. Everyone is gone."

"I don't need them," Asuka said coolly. "They were only a burden to begin with, just like you." She moved uncomfortably, hinting for Shinji to get off of her. He immediately obliged this silent instruction politely. Asuka sat up and looked around the vast emptiness that surrounded them. She had completely awoken from her dream-like state and now was as harsh as ever. The city of Tokyo- 3 lay in a wreck around where there were now sitting and the sea of LCL ahead of them continued on into the horizon. "It's so desolate," she commented almost indifferently. "The third impact hit hard."

Shinji didn't reply as he was now hunched up hugging his legs and crying heavily into his hands. He was in a bad state. Asuka viewed him with scorn. She got to her feet and looked condescendingly at him from above as though he was a small child. "You're pathetic," she said in sincere disappointment. "I thought you were a man when I awoke from that long uncomfortable sleep," She explained. "But your control on me didn't last. You disappointed me again, you're just a confused little boy."

"I'm just being honest with my feelings," Shinji explained as she started to walk away. "I don't know why you can't be the same." She turned back and stared for moments slowly passed. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"No one needs your cheap honesty, Shinji," she stated. "You only feel sorry for yourself. Get over it."

"I can't, I'm not as strong as you!" He shouted in anxiety. He looked up at her slender figure, wishing it were gone from his sight. There didn't seem to be an ounce of pity in her slender frame. Did she even know what he had just been through?

"We need to find others, to find food," Asuka instructed. "It will take time to find anything, everywhere looks so desolate. We don't have time for your little fits of depression." She sighed irritably. "We'll hopefully find some more survivors."

"I don't want to," Shinji mumbled. "I'd rather die here than die looking for food."

"Oh shut up!" Asuka yelled. "If you're going to kill yourself then do it now. I won't stop you if you decide to walk into that sea of LCL, in fact I suggest it." She paused. "It'll mean I won't have to listen to you anymore."

"You're acting like Misato," Shinji whispered, smiling through his tears. "I miss her." He got to his feet and without looking at her he walked directly towards Asuka. "It's really a new beginning. The third impact released every human soul but ours."

"No, there are more. There has to be more." Asuka said, starting to sound desperate for the first time since she had awoken. "We can't have been the only ones with the will to survive." She paused for a moment and stared at the ground, looking slightly weaker all of a sudden. There were moments of silence with only the sound of waves being present. Shinji didn't know what to say and so he decided to stay silent. There was an increasingly uneasy look on Asuka's face.

"There could be more," Shinji eventually spurted out, trying to comfort the girl. "I don't know what'll happen. Maybe you're right, maybe we should look for them."

"I thought you wanted to die here." She said cruelly. "Can't you ever make up your mind?"

"I'm sorry," Shinji replied. "I don't know what to do, there's no one to tell me anymore."

Silence followed this for a lengthy period of time. A tear fell from Asuka's face. "Shinji," She said weakly. Her voice was incredibly shaky. "I'm scared."

**End Chapter 1**

_A/N: Thank you for reading the first chapter. The next ones will be far longer, this was more of an introductory chapter. Please review now, you're comments are valuable, as they make me feel good and/ or help me improve my writing skills. Thanks again,_

_Paul._


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